Cup Final Heroes- Terry Conroy

Sun, 26/04/2015 - 16:57

In 1965/66 Glentoran ended a 15 year wait to pick up the Irish Cup crown for an 8th time, once again against the old enemy Linfield. Terry Conroy was the hero on the day, scoring both goals in a 2-0 victory. Conroy was born in Dublin and signed for Glentoran at the age of 19 following a spell with Home Farm. He signed for the Glens and went straight into the squad for the Seconds in the Steel and Sons Cup Final victory over Larne. His first team debut was a goalscoring one as he netted in a 3-2 win against Ards, a game which saw Glentoran's leading goalscorer Trevor Thompson bag his 300th for the club.

Glentoran's Irish Cup run in 1966 began with a win against Banbridge Town where 'Champagne' Charlie McDonnell's hat-trick proved the only bright spot in a dull 1st round clash. Distillery proved tough opponents in the second round with it taking three attempts for The Glens to see them off. Albert Finlay saved a penalty in the first game whilst Bryan Hamilton starred for The Whites throughout. In the semi-final, the weather became the central feature with high winds and driving rain playing their part. The game finished 1-1 but Terry Conroy should have won it for The Glens. The replay however served up a surprisingly easy 5-0 win for The Glens.

Once again Glentoran found themselves facing the old enemy in The Irish Cup Final, as the packed Oval hosted Linfield on 23rd April. The game marked the opening of the lower stand, adding 1,100 additional seats to the 2,500 upstairs. The day will be sadly remembered for an incident where a group of Linfield supporters hit Glentoran keeper Albert Finlay in the groin with a stone but following treatment, Finlay played on. Glentoran got their revenge too running out 2-0 winners. Terry Conroy was the hero with both goals scored on the 32nd and 88th minute.

Conroy scored 8 goals in that first season for Glentoran and impressed in the next season, the 66-67 season, possibly the most famous in Glentoran's history. Conroy scored 25 goals and took part in the famous draw over Rangers in the Cup Winners Cup. His impressive performances saw him secure a move in March 1967 to Stoke for a reported £15,000. Sadly a March departure meant Conroy missed out on the famous Detroit Cougar tour that summer but Conroy still played his part in arguably Glentoran's greatest ever side.

Conroy went on to become one of Stoke City's most famous players in a career spanding from 1967-79 making 271 appearances and scoring 49 goals for the English club. He was capped 26 times by the Republic of Ireland as well. Conroy in later years has gone on to do PR work at the Britannia Stadium until he left the club in 2009 to a large half-time ovasion from the Stoke faithful. He was appointed welfare officer for the FAI in 2009.

But for Glentoran it will be those two goals over Linfield that ended a 15 year wait for an Irish Cup crown that have earned him a deserved spot on Glentoran's Cup Final Hero list.